After owning the car for 5 days here are some of my observation from the driving performance /feel point of view.
Suspension (sport)
Suspension setup is quite good, minimal body roll and fairly stiff damping but still very complaint to the road .
Tires
Tires are quite good, good grip, absorbs bumps, and good sound deadening.
Steering
Responsive, very short 2.5 lock to lock (I believe) and have enough weight.
Clutch
Very soft, engagement is very high, second gear is a bit difficult to be smooth.
Seat/driving position
The seat sits pretty high up, it could be a lot lower, not a whole lot of lateral support.
Engine
I haven’t hit 500 miles yet so I haven’t redline it however, I notices the vtec engages around 4500 RPM. Engine is fairly responsive.
Braking
Decent but could be tighter.
Heel and Toe
Very easily done, peddles are placed closely together and similar height.
Corning
Stable, allows mid corner correction without a lot of fuss. Minimal weight shift breaking into and powering out of corners.

 

I'm glad someone else mentioned second gear being a little tricky. I thought it was just me.

And at 5'3, I'm very thankful the seat sits high or I would be in booster seat.

 

I agree with most of your points.

Yes, there is a mild rev hang from 1st to 2nd, and if you wait for the revs to fall to match it, you'll witness the jerkiness. But if you ignore the rev hang and just shift naturally, it will be a smooth engagement.

I feel the seat lateral support is ample, especially since it's grippy fabric. Much better than the stupid leather seats in my last 3 Hondas. I have my own observations with the seats, though. But that's for another time. I feel the seats are generally great.

Vtec engages at 45,000 rpm?? Boy howdy! That's one fast engine!!

To me the ONLY major disappointment is the braking performance. It's sooooo weak, especially after a few thousand miles like mine - it gets weaker. I'm definitely planning to switch to Hawk HPS pads soon, and maybe steel brake lines. Then the car will be perfect.

 

I agree, the brakes are poor. Going to a 205 tire helped some, but it's still not good enough. If anyone wants to make some aftermarket money on this car, offering an enhanced brake kit would get my money.

 

Ops, haha, I always screw up RPMs.